Probe continues into collision of bicyclist, Waukesha squad car

Aug. 30, 2010
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By Laurel Walker of the Journal Sentinel

Aug. 30, 2010 0

Waukesha - The Wisconsin State Patrol trooper who is reconstructing the July 13 accident in which a Waukesha police squad struck a bicyclist crossing Highway 164 said Monday that the case is still under investigation.

Trooper Matthew Johnson, the reconstruction specialist, said Monday that once his report is done, it will be forwarded to the Waukesha County district attorney's office for review.

Travis Weber, 17, of Waukesha, the bicyclist who suffered life-threatening injuries and was transported by Flight for Life to Children's Hospital, is no longer a patient there, a spokesman said. His mother, reached by telephone Monday, declined to comment on Weber's injuries, current condition or whether he was home.

The state accident reporting form filed by Waukesha police states that the squad car driven by officer Ian DeKarske left skid marks before striking the bicyclist at the uncontrolled intersection of Lincoln Ave. and Les Paul Parkway - Highway 59/164 - but the distance of the marks was not given.

Waukesha police said DeKarske, 24, was responding to assist another officer in a non-emergency manner, without lights or siren, when the accident occurred. The speed limit on that stretch is 45 mph. The accident form does not say how fast DeKarske was traveling.

According to the report, DeKarske's squad was southbound in the center of three lanes on Highway 59/164 when he struck Weber, who was crossing the road east to west with another bicyclist. Police said the bicyclists were wearing dark clothing. Weber and his bike were thrown ahead onto the road.

The accident occurred about 9:30 p.m. at a spot not lighted by street lights, the report says.

About Laurel Walker
Laurel Walker covered local, school and county government for 20 years -- the last half of that at the Milwaukee Journal and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel -- before she was named Waukesha County columnist in 1997. Today she writes about the people, places and events around metropolitan Milwaukee with a broad suburban focus. She was the youngest of nine children raised on a central Wisconsin farm before leaving the nest for journalism studies at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a masters degree at the University of Oregon. She has spent the last half of her life in Waukesha County, where she and her husband raised two sons. Though she has a fondness for life in Waukesha, she eagerly partakes in the culture of the big city to the east and the recreation of the forests to the west. With sons in the arts, she has a special fondness for symphonic music concerts and art museums. She finds peace in a good book at a Northwoods getaway weekend, adventure in family visits to the east and west coasts, and satisfaction in a column well-written that reaches readers.
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